Five police officers wounded in Manama attack

Five Bahraini policemen were lightly injured in what interior ministry says was a terrorist blast outside the capital Manama on Monday.

The policemen were "securing Ashoora procession on Budaiya Highway in Daih", according to the official Bahrain news agency.

The annual Ashoora festival commemorates the death of Prophet Mohammad’s grandson Imam Hussein some 1400 years ago.

The necessary steps are being taken, the interior ministry said on its Twitter account.

Capital Governor Sheikh Hesham bin Abdulrahman Al-Khalifa condemned "the criminal terror blast" and said he had full confidence "in the ability of security agencies to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice to face charges".

He said that “citizens and parties in charge of Ashoora rituals commend the security services" which are working round the clock to ensure Hussainya processions in Manama are provided "an atmosphere of security and serenity".